


Facing Fears

by elizabethbri



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Co parents Eddie and Buck, Domestic Fluff, Everyone else knows, Light Angst, M/M, OC Moms - Freeform, POV Outsider, even if they don't know, just a little bit, mostly the moms pov I think
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-07
Updated: 2020-02-08
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:41:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,427
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22604125
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elizabethbri/pseuds/elizabethbri
Summary: This is the discord chats doing."Prompt: Christopher has an end of year class trip to an amusement park and he asks Eddie if Buck can chaperone. Turns out Christopher heard some of his classmates talking about the wave pool in the water part of the park and he wants Buck with him cuz Buck saved him from the tsunami last time."Includes Eddie and Buck being adorable dads, jealous (and swooning) moms, and all three boys facing their fears together.
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz
Comments: 108
Kudos: 1052
Collections: Favourites





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> I have a lot of chapter two written, probably will end it there, depending on how long it gets I might to a chapter three - but then that will really really be all of it. 
> 
> Not beta'd, I read it over a few times but it's hard to catch your own grammar mistakes, anything too bad feel free to leave a comment and I'll fix it.

Chris came barreling out of school that afternoon, moving faster than Eddie had ever seen. Eddie was alarmed, but calmly caught Christopher when he ran himself straight into his father's stomach.

“What’s up, mijo? What’s the rush?” Eddie bent down so he could block his son from the crowds of parents trying to locate their kids.

Chris had a panicked look on his face when he asked, “Are we seeing Buck today? Can we see Buck right now?”

Eddie frowned at Chris, “You know Buck’s at work right now. We weren’t going to see him today, why do you need to see him so bad?” When Chris’s eyes widened a fraction and looked to be tearing up Eddie tried to soothe him, “We can call him right now? If he’s not busy he’ll answer and if he is he’ll call us back when he’s able to.”

But Christopher was already shaking his head, “No, no. I can’t tell y-” He abruptly stopped and shook his head again, “I have to tell Buck myself. Daddy, please? I have to tell Buck.”

At a loss, but not missing the part when Chris almost said he can’t tell Eddie, he relented. “Okay, okay, buddy relax. We can go to the firehouse and wait around for him. It’ll be okay. You want to tell me first?”

Chris had calmed considerably and he shook his head again, nudging Eddie to stand so they could get a move on already. “No it’s okay. I’ll tell you after I ask Buck. It’ll be okay after I tell Bucky. Come on Dad, we gotta go.”

___

Buck had been just arriving from an easy call when he heard the clacking of Chris’s crutches on the firehouse floor, sounding much quicker than they usually did. Buck spun on his heels to meet the little boy, who, as soon as he could, launched himself into Buck.

“Woah! Hey, buddy. Whatcha doing here?” Buck looked to Eddie for clues, but he just had a small frown on his face, worry wrinkling his pretty features. Eddie shook his head and shrugged his shoulders at Bucks questioning glance.

The rest of the 118 looked on with the same questioning frowns. While it wasn’t out of the ordinary for Chris and Buck to be hugging, it was unusual that Eddie looked so tense over it.

“He’s gotta tell you something. So important it couldn’t wait or be said over the phone.”

Buck frowned, but quickly morphed to a smile for Christopher. “Cool, bud. Can’t wait to hear it.”

Chris shook his head, he whispered, but it wasn’t quiet enough for it to not carry throughout the vast open space of the firehouse, “We can’t tell Daddy yet. Can we go upstairs?”

Buck glanced all around him, sure that everyone could hear the strange request. “Sure bud. Do you want to walk, or-”

“No, I need Daddy to hold my crutches. Can you hold me and my backpack?” Chris asked it like a question, but he already had his arms secured around Bucks neck and didn’t indicate he’d be letting go anytime soon. Buck stood, taking Chris with him, and Christopher immediately tightened his knees around Bucks sides and laid his head on Buck’s shoulder.

Frowning over Chris’s shoulder, Buck and Eddie tried to communicate with just their eyes.

_“I don’t know what's wrong.” Eddie's said._   
_“It’s okay, I'll take care of him.” Buck's assured._

Eddie had made the switch of crutches for backpack efficiently, and Buck soon was walking up the stairs towards the lounge with Chris wrapped around him like a monkey.

The 118 soon swarmed Eddie to confer in quiet whispers, and to give Buck and Chris some space.

“I don’t know what’s the matter. He sprinted out of school and nearly cried when I said we could wait to see Buck. He didn’t tell me, said it had to wait until he talked to Buck first.”

Hen winced, “Eddie, Buck will tell you what he says.”

But Eddie waved her away, “I know that, I’m just worried about it being something bad. He doesn’t like to tell me things that he’s scared of because it makes me sad.”

___

When Eddie went to drop Chris on the couch before Buck sat down, he clenched his knees tighter and whimpered, “No, I want to sit with you.”

Buck’s heart ached, and he gently cradled the back of the little boys head as he carefully sat them together. Buck ended up a little sideways on the couch, back to the armrest so he could lay them out together, trying to get Chris to look him in the face again.

“Okay, buddy, what’s the matter?” Chris frantically reached for his backpack, twisting so fast he almost slid right off Bucks lap where he sat, facing the older man.

“We got told about our field trip at school and I got really scared, but I don’t want to be scared. I want to go, but I know it’s going to be scary. I miss surfing so I have to be brave and do it, but I can’t do it without you. You saved me last time so I know that you could save me this time too. I know Daddy could too, but I just know that you’re really good at swimming and I -” Chris was still on a roll, still searching his backpack, but not really making sense so Buck stopped him.

“Woah woah woah. Okay, bud, lets slow down. What are you looking for? You gotta start from the top, I don’t know what you’re talking about." Buck grabbed the small boy's face in his hands and breathed in and out slowly, "Take a deep breath." Chris followed his lead, his tiny chest expanding and falling slowly, then pulled a paper from his bag.

It was a notice to parents about the upcoming field trip. They had already begun the planning well in advance, but due to recent happenings were changing some things up. The trip was to a water park. Buck glanced around for Eddie quickly, but the man was nowhere to be seen.

It was decided on before the tsunami, but due to those affected, the faculty wanted to give ample time to parents to decide how to proceed. The letter said that they asked the students, and they overwhelmingly wanted to go to the water park rather than delay and pick a new trip. But the students also largely admitted to fear and apprehension concerning the trip, so the faculty decided to change the chaperone policy.

Usually it was about 5-8 students per parent/teacher lead group. They had decided to open it up to all parents, and they are removing the rule about immediate guardians. Anyone who is approved by the parent can chaperone the trip, be it an uncle, a family friend, an unmarried partner. This is to maximize the amount of available chaperones.

If a child has no guardian available to chaperone, they will be placed in a group, with a maximum of about 3-4 students per 1 or 2 chaperones. The letter states they want all the children to feel safe and want every child to feel like there is an adequate number of adults to supervise. Usually they strongly encourage every student to accompany them on the school trips, but this one is open attendance and they will not be penalized if they call out of school that day.

Buck had been absently rubbing Christopher's back, as he had slumped to lean all the way against Buck's chest, forehead planted in Buck's neck. He had calmed down a considerable amount and so Buck deemed it safe to start over.

“Do you want to stay home this day? No one will think you’re not brave if you do.”

Chris shook his head, but didn’t lift it. “I want to go. I miss surfing and I miss swimming. I'm scared of the water though. That's why - Buck - That’s why I want you to come. I know you can save me if I get scared, just like last time, Buck.”

Buck gulped, hugging Chris close. The 118 had slowly tricked up the stairs, but kept their distance, loitering in the kitchen. Buck still couldn’t believe Chris and Eddie didn’t blame him for losing Chris.

“Okay. I see. You don’t want to tell Dad? Your dad will want to come on the trip too.”

“No, no. He can come. I just need to tell you first. I don’t want him to know I’m scared. I don’t want to go if you can’t come, so I can’t tell him about it yet.”

“Buddy,” Buck gently admonished, “It’s okay to be scared. You can tell Dad anything - everything! And you should, he likes to know how you’re feeling, even if you are scared or sad.” Buck took a deep breath and eased Chris up to look at him. “I can come, of course I can come. I would do anything for you, Chris. So would your dad, so we should have him come over and tell him, yeah?”

Chris hugged Buck, and Buck took the moment to get himself together. Honestly, the idea of the water park scared him too. He didn’t know if he could even have Chris in the wave pool without having a panic attack. But he would do anything for Chris, so he’ll learn to keep it together. Buck wasn’t going to rush Chris, or disrupt this hug - that might’ve been holding him together, so he just hugged him back and waited.

Finally, Chris sighed into Bucks neck and slowly leaned up. “Okay, Daddy.”

Eddie barely let Chris finish, was at the couch before he completed the sentence. Bobby, Hen, and Chimney had given up all pretenses and were openly staring at the trio.

“Everything okay?”

Buck swung his legs off the couch and twisted to give Eddie room to his next to him, he did not, however, release his hold on Chris. When Eddie searched Bucks face, he saw a touch of panic behind a mask of calm.

Chris had shrunk back down into Buck’s chest, and in other circumstances the sight would have made Eddie swoon. But as it was, his little boy clenched as small as he could be, was making his heart hurt and his pulse rise with apprehension.

Chris began muttering softly, “We got told the field trip today. It’s going to be okay because you and Buck can come and make sure it's all okay. It’s going to be scary, but were all going to be okay, okay Daddy?” Chris crawled out of Buck’s lap and into his fathers, patting his face softly and tucking himself under Eddies chin. Buck let the boy go, but kept a hand on his back. He may have been soothing himself more than Chris, but he couldn’t bring himself to move his hand.

Eddie belated realized Chris was trying to assure him, “Okay, buddy, I believe you.” Eddie also moved to smooth his hand down his son’s back and didn’t notice when his fingers landed over Bucks. Neither of them moved.

Buck handed over the paper and Eddie scanned it quickly, shooting a worried look at Buck.

“Oh, wow. You’re sure? You both are sure? You guys want to do this?” Buck had begun to stare off over Eddie's shoulder.

"Hmm," He hums faintly, in a vague response to Eddie's question.

Chris gives a much more enthusiastic agreement, "It's going to be so fun once it stops being scary. Right, Buck?"

Eddie watched Buck build up his mask, smirking at Chris, "Yes, sir! I'm very excited, buddy."

___

After Eddie and Chris left the day went by slowly. The bell never rung, the team lazed about in the lounge. Bobby had tried to get Buck to open up about how he felt about going to the water park but he was putting up a brave face which wouldn't be cracked. Only after he had been home did he begin to process.

He did think it would be good for him to face the water again. Being in charge of Chris stressed him out more than the wave pool, in which he could most certainly touch the floor and have his head out of the water still.

Buck had simply been staring at the wall, imagining how it would feel to lose Christopher again - this time he slips out of Buck's grasp and gets swept into the undertow of the artificial waves. He gets trapped by all the other kids, all the other parents. They surely can't save him if Buck can't even hold his hand properly - when he noticed his phone ringing, vibrating it's away across the coffee table. He knows it's Eddie because his contact photo is his favorite picture of the two Diaz boys. Eddie is bent to squeeze his head in next to Chris's and Chris is grinning like a fool, reaching his hands out towards the camera for Buck. Eddie had his eyes on Buck also, full of fondness and other things Buck wasn't willing to inspect.

Buck was so caught in the memory, he almost missed the call.

"Hey, man. How's Chris doing?" He spoke slowly, purposefully putting himself at ease, banishing the images of Chris floating away from him from his mind.

Eddie sighed, "Buck. Christopher is fine. You put him totally at ease, he's looking forward to it now. How are you doing?" There was a special emphasis on the final question that Buck was going to ignore.

"Oh, I'm doing great man."

Eddie waited. Buck pursed his lips, wondering if Eddie would let it slide or if he would push. Eddie sighed again.

"Buck."

"Eddie." Buck aimed for a deadpanned voice, but it may have come out a touch pleading.

"No, Evan, I'm serious." And that was Eddie's angry-dad-voice, one that rarely ever made an appearance for Chris. He continues, gentle but firm, "How are you doing? You haven't told me anything about the nightmares recently, but that doesn't mean you're over it. I need to know you're actually up for this."

Buck winced. He knew Eddie didn't trust him as much as he claimed. "I am up for it. I can't not go. Chris thinks I make him feel safe, I will be there to make him feel safe. If I can't actually save him, again, you'll be there to." Buck hesitated to say it but blurted it quickly, "You'll always have my back, right?"

Eddie practically growled, "Buck we have been over this countless times. I don't think you failed Chris. I don't think that you won't be able to protect him, I know you can. I will always have your back. I-" Eddie seemed to suck in a breath and exhale it slowly, "I will always have your back. I meant are you mentally up for it. If you're not that's okay. You can still come. You can support Chris and I'll support you. We're a team, okay? We're gonna be okay."

Buck breathed out harshly, but it was exactly what he needed to hear without even realizing it. "Okay. Okay. It'll be okay."

Eddie reassured him once more and then wished him goodnight, made him promise he'd really go to bed, not stew over his fears. Buck promised to try.

After the phone call, though, Buck was feeling much lighter around the chest, and sleep came easy.


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys head to the water park.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to be clear, because I realize I didn't mention it in the fic : these chapters don't take place in consecutive days. 
> 
> Chris gets the letter like a week an a half before the trip, so a week and a half has passed from chapter one. Didn't want any confusion because Buck sleeps peacefully at the end of ch.1 and at the start of ch.2 he says he had bad sleep. 
> 
> Ok, enjoy!

The day of Chris's field trip was finally here. Both Buck and Eddie had the previous day off to rest up and get their schedules normal to go on the trip. Buck may or may not have listened. Which means that Buck had barely slept the night before. He knew, though, when the day was over he could pass out at Eddies so that was enough to carry him through the day.

There were a lot of people on the trip. Chris's school was 1-5th grade, and a majority of the student body had at least one chaperone sign up, and a smaller portion had two chaperones. Plus all the teachers and aides and other odd faculty. There were a large number of buses lining up, Eddie didn't bother counting and he noticed Buck try and fail (with all the parking and moving around).

Chris’s teacher, Mrs. Hannah, was a nice young girl, straight out of college - actually probably around Buck's age but Eddie didn't think too hard about that. When Mrs. Hannah, ( _"Just call me Hannah, please."_ ), had introduced all the parents this morning before they were to leave most of it went over both Buck and Eddies head. They each assumed the other was listening and so neither of them learned a single name of another parent. Hannah had also asked the parents to disclose any traumatic experiences they or their children had had with the tsunami so they could all be prepared.

It was a small class, all things considered, just about 18 kids. Most had been unaffected, thankfully, but a handful had seen enough news coverage to get a pretty good scare out of it. One parent had gotten trapped for two hours before he was rescued, but he had stayed at home today. Buck and Eddie were the last to go. Buck was busy staring over at where Chris sat with some friends, practically vibrating with excitement.

Eddie laid a hand on his arm before speaking. "Buck and Christopher were on the pier when it happened." Hannah knew this, of course, hearing from both Chris and Eddie when it first occurred, but the rest of the parents gasped and murmured apologies.

Buck winced, "Um, I found him first off pretty quick after the first wave and we got somewhere sort of safe, but we got separated for a long time. It was a hard day."

Eddie rubbed his back soothingly. "It's both of their first times back in water and we're all a little nervous. Chris really doesn't want to be scared anymore, so we're all gonna face our fears today. It'll be okay, though." Eddie was supposed to be telling the other parents, but he felt like he was speaking straight to Buck, even if the man was avoiding eye contact.

Soon everyone was assigned a group. All but two kids had a chaperone, so those two went with Hannah, though a lot of the kids had plans to play together so a lot of parents planned to stick together in one big group. Buck and Eddie figured they'd go wherever Chris wanted.

On the bus Chris had asked about his crutches, and a few parents informed them that while they are _pretty_ disable-friendly, the slides all had stairs that were difficult to navigate. So they decided that he could bring them in, but if need be he could hold onto either Eddie or Buck or he would be carried. Chris enjoyed being independent, but Eddie thought he was feeling a bit lenient on account of being so nervous. He certainly hasn't released his hold on Buck since they sat on the bus.

Eddie had caught quite a few stares since they rolled up and declared themselves the chaperones of Christopher Diaz. Eddie hadn't made it clear if he and Buck were together or not, and to be truthful Eddie wasn't always clear on that himself. So he let the hoards ponder. Buck certainly wasn't making it easy to tell. Chris called Buck 'Buck' or 'Bucky' most often, so that was a point for no. But Buck called Eddie 'Dad' or 'Daddy' when speaking to Chris, which was a point for yes in Eddie's opinion.

Also a point for yes, Chris dealt with Buck like a parent. Chris asked him for help to climb on the bus, he climbed right back into his lap when Buck set him down into a seat. Chris asked him questions about what they were doing to have for dinner that night, as he just had.

Buck smirked mischievously, "I don't know, buddy. How 'bout you ask Daddy?" Then he leaned in and loudly whispered, "I bet we can get him to agree to pizza and ice cream if we give him puppy eyes."

Eddie tried, and failed, not to smile. Buck has already gotten Eddie to agree to pizza and ice cream. Buck had thought that if today was as emotionally taxing as they expected, neither of them was going to want to make dinner. It seemed to go unsaid that Buck would be coming home with them for dinner after they got back to school.

"Ooh. Hey Dad. Can we have pizza and ice cream for dinner? Pleeeeease? Oh! And movies! We have to watch Moana tonight! Right, Buck? You love Moana." Chris did in fact whip out his pleading expression, puppy eyes and all.

Buck probably would not have said that Moana was his favorite, but he let Chris believe it because he thought it would help him get over his fear of the water. It helped, but they watched that movie a shit ton more than Buck has expected them too. Both Buck and Eddie knew all the songs and they could probably quote a large portion of the movie with some prompting.

"Yeah, okay. We can do that. Only because you're so cute, though."

Buck crowed in victory, squeezing Chris around his middle and whispering in his ear, "We sure got him this time." Chris laughed merrily along with him.

If only all day could have gone this happily.

___

The moms of the other children from Mrs. Hannah's room all sat together, their husbands elsewhere. They couldn't care one bit, putting all their attention on the Diaz family. They all sat, huddling, whispering to one another.

"I cannot believe these men are gonna come out here wearing trendy five inch inseam swim trunks and have the audacity to be good dad's." One muttered darkly.

"I remember when my husband was a good dad." Another joked, rolling her eyes.

"I remember when my husband had abs." A third chimed in.

All at once, they all sighed.

"I don't see a ring." Someone observed.

"On either of them." A woman agreed.

The first women spoke again, "Wonder which one would get to you first if you were to slip and fall in the deep end. Both would be good. Oh god, I meant either, but really, _both would be good_."

___

Arriving at the waterpark was sobering for all three boys. Chris struggled for a moment, deciding whether he really wanted to bring his crutches after all. They were his form of independence, but if he used them he couldn’t hold onto Buck or his father's hand.

"Daddy, I think it's better if we leave them, in case they get lost or something." Chris advises as the bus rolls to a stop. Eddie isn’t worried about that, he knew they’d be able to find all their belongings easily, and as the school had rented out the whole park he wasn’t worried about someone stealing them, but he just hummed an agreement to Chris. Eddie thought he must’ve had a reason he didn’t want to share, so he let it be.

Before everyone could leave, another teacher, Mr. Ryland, stood at the front and reminded all the children, and maybe the parents, of the rules.

"Stick with your chaperones. Don’t run off alone, parent’s don’t let them run off alone. Everyone is sticking together today. Absolutely no roughhousing. No fake drowning, not that that should be allowed on any occasion, but now specifically it will not be tolerated. If you pretend to scare someone you will not be allowed to participate the rest of the day.” He went on to remind everyone of the talks they had at school about triggers and fear and anxiety, telling everyone it was okay to be scared and it was not okay to make fun of someone who was scared.

Buck carried Chris off the bus but once they began walking towards the entrance, Chris spoke up, “Bucky can you put me on Daddy’s back?”

Eddie was a little surprised, thinking that Chris would have wanted to cling to Buck - his hero - for as long as he could. Regardless, he quickly removed Chris’s backpack and turned to offer Buck his back. Buck effortlessly swung Christopher away from his body and easily plopped him onto Eddie’s back. Without thinking, he followed it up with a kiss to Chris’s cheek. “Anything for you, buddy.” Then, he snagged the backpack from Eddies hand and exaggeratedly dropped his arm down, as if the back weighed way more than he could carry.

“God, Christopher, what did you pack us? Bricks for lunch?” Buck lamented, inching his hand higher and higher slowly, like it was all he could manage.

Chris giggled, “No! Daddy packed lunch.”

Buck gasped dramatically, “Daddy packed us bricks for lunch? What are we going to do? We’ll turn into boulders if we eat bricks.”

Eddie spoke up, “Daddy only packed Buck bricks, he needs to gain some weight. Chris and I have turkey and swiss sandwiches and cookies and plenty of water.”

Chris was dissolving into nothing more than hiccups, he was laughing so hard. Eddie realized they had gotten through the gates and past a big swimming pool and Chris hadn’t even noticed. Eddie glanced at him and saw he was smiling, watching Christopher. As if he felt eyes on him, his gaze drifted back to Eddie. His smile dimmed, but he nodded slightly to indicate it was still okay.

___

Chris spotted his friend Javi and asked to sit with him and his mom, so Eddie and Buck ambled over and claimed two beach chairs beside them. Chris finally let himself be put down, but he stayed close. Javi’s mom introduced herself as Annie and shook Buck and Eddies hands in a friendly way. Eddie had noticed some of the moms were staring in a particularly not friendly way and he was determined to steer clear of them as much as he was able.

Buck was making small talk with a mom of twin girls a row behind us when Chris popped up from the end of the lounge chair and both Eddie and Buck whipped around at his sudden movement.

“What’s up, bud?” Eddie asked easily, determined not to rub his anxiety off on either Buck or Chris.

“Where are we going to start?” He whispered, seeming overwhelmed all of a sudden.

The two older men took quick inventory of the park around them. It was pretty large, loosely organized by age range. There was a large body slide in the far back and doubles tube slides in the middle area. Where they were currently was aimed at younger kids, with easy slides and a water jungle gym. They had walked past a toddler and baby area, which was near the large swimming pool. Buck couldn't immediately see it, but he knew somewhere around here was a wave pool and a large lazy river, that was supposed to wind around the whole park.

Annie spoke up, “You know, we walked past a little drop in area for the lazy river, the water is real shallow and you can ease into the flow of the water whenever you want.” She must have caught Chris’s apprehension and Eddie and Buck were thankful for the save.

“That sounds perfect. We can test the water, see if it's too cold or if we are willing to try it out.” Buck smiled down at Chris, who was hanging off him with his hands fisted in Bucks t shirt. Eddie knew that Buck didn’t really think the water would be too cold, but he recognized him giving Chris an easy out, so he smiled softly in gratitude and urged Chris, “That does sound perfect, huh, buddy?” Chris agreed and ordered Buck to get ready.

Buck came over that morning so that they could all get ready together, both men opting to wear their swim trunks with t shirts and bring clothes to wear home. Chris had dug out one of his surfing shirts and had worn that instead of a regular t shirt so he could wear it in the water also. So really, Eddie and Buck only had to remove their shoes and their shirts.

Eddie couldn’t help but admire Buck as he peeled his t shirt up and over his head, slowly revealing spans of tanned muscles torso. He got so caught up, he forgot that he was also supposed to be getting undressed. Buck teases him, “Get a move on Diaz, we don’t have time for slowpokes.”

Annie eyed Eddie knowingly and when he caught her eye he blushed mightily and quickly turned away. “Alright, alright. Sheesh.” He muttered and quickly shed his shirt and kicked off his shoes. “Let’s go then! I’m waiting on you now!” Eddie jumped over the lounge chair and began walking backwards in the direction Annie had pointed.

Chris opted to walk at first, holding onto Bucks hand, so Eddie slowed in order to grab Chris’s other hand, giving him more support. As soon as the mouth of the drop off came into view Chris stopped, “Bucky,” he whispered, voice shaking. Buck smoothly swung Chris off the ground and into his arms.

“I know it’s scary. It’s going to be okay. I’ve got you.” Buck began whispering encouragements reassuringly to Chris. Where Chris couldn’t see, Eddie began rubbing Buck’s back in his own form of encouragement. Next to them, Javi grabbed onto his mother's hand and didn’t make any comment towards Chris. Annie’s husband was the one who had been trapped, and didn’t come today. Javi probably had his own fears to overcome today as well.

When they finally got to the water's edge, Buck stopped and was quietly talking with Chris, so much so that even Eddie standing next to them couldn’t hear. The opening was wide and gradually funneled down to flowing “river”. There were single and double tubes stacked to the side out of the water and there were some floating in the small area.

Finally Buck stepped forward enough that just his toes touched the water, the waves slowly lapping up and over them. Chris seemed to nod, so Buck stepped again. He said, a little bit louder than a whisper, “It's not too cold, buddy.” Which seems to have become code for scary. Chris whispered something and Buck nodded his agreement, then after one deep breath he sat in the shallow water. It only came up about 3 inches on his feet, where his body was the deepest, and it was even less near his butt. Buck had managed to sit without displacing Chris at all, who still hadn’t touched the water. They sat just like that for a while, and Eddie, still outside the water, watched Bucks tense shoulders gradually fall as he calmed.

Javi launched himself into the slightly deeper water, still only about two and a half feet deep and laughed. “Chris, it's not too cold.” He encouraged softly, and whether he knew the code or not was anyone's guess. Chris sat up from where he had been leaning on Buck’s shoulder and, again, whispered something too quiet for Eddie to hear.

Buck whispered something back, and after a nod from Chris, he was maneuvering the young boy to sit on his lap, arms wrapped tight around him. Chris leaned back into Buck’s chest and let his feet fall to either side of Bucks thighs. His little arms stuck out beneath Bucks and they quickly curled tightly around the older man's biceps. Eddie felt frozen. Buck was so much wider than Chris, the only parts of his son he could see were his elbows and knees that stuck out, but the image of the two of them sent him down a spiral of longing. His two boys were being so strong and brave and Eddie couldn’t make himself interrupt until he thought they needed him.

Buck didn’t know how long they sat together. He didn’t want to rush Chris and he felt this was a good starting point. Chris sighed happily. “It’s not too scary, Buck.”

“No? You want to move yet?”

Chris nodded, “A little.”

So Buck had Chris move his arms and cross his legs and he planted his feet where they were and planted his palms behind him. Then he crab-walked forward until Chris would be submerged to his stomach and dropped them back down into their previous position.

Chris gasped softly as the water lapped at his skin, but he seemed settled. “You’re gonna hold me in the river too? We can share a tube?”  
“Yeah, buddy. I won’t let go until you want me too. And if today you never want me too, that alright also.”

Chris nodded, and then looked to watch Javi swim around the small area. The kid was more than ready to get in the river, but wasn’t willing to push his friend and Buck thought it was so sweet to see. “Let's get Daddy too. We can share a double tube.”

“That's a great idea, buddy. Want to walk a little more in, first?” When Chris nodded, Buck stood and kept one arm around Chris’s middle and the other under him to hold his weight - how you might hold a toddler - but Chris didn’t seem to mind so Buck just slowly moved them deeper. When he reached far enough to feel the slow current of the lazy river he warned Chris he was going to sink into the water, and then did so slowly. When it seemed like Chris was handling it okay, Buck looked to Eddie. The man stood stock still on the edge of the water, focused squarely on them. Buck smiled and nodded, and Eddie took his cue to enter the water.

Chris yelled for him to grab a double tube, which he did, and Eddie snagged a single as well. “That’s too many, Dad.”

“Why, there’s three of us?” Eddie asked, confusion clear in the wrinkle of the man's nose, something that Buck found incredibly endearing.

“We just need the double. You can share with me and Buck. Buck and I in one, and you in the other. Right, Bucky?”

Buck shrugged, “Whatever you want. I think we’ll all fit.”

Eddie dropped one half of the tube over the pairs heads, shoving a little when Buck’s shoulder caught. They popped out and Chris nodded at the other opening, "C'mon Daddy. C'mon Javi! We're ready."

Eddie ducked under the water and popped up under the tube, his shoulders stuck too and he had to wiggle his way out, one arm at a time - to the delight of both Chris and Buck.

Buck's feet popped out next to Eddie's torso and they wiggled their way up the tube to rest there. When Eddie looked to Buck, he had reclined back with his arms over the sides of the tube. Chris sat in his lap, leaning towards Eddie's side of the tube. Eddie's stomach swooped at the sight of his two favorite boys grinning like fools.

Eddie had little choice with where he could go, given that he wasn't about to displace Buck and Chris. So he sat on the edge on the side opposite of Buck's feet and let just his lower legs dangle in the water. He made sure they didn't drift too close to the walls so Buck's arms wouldn't drag against the rough texture.

They stayed as they were for a full lap, Chris and Javi talking from separate tubes. It took a long while due to the slow flow of the water, but Chris had a blast. He found a handful of other friends on the way and he was completely at ease. Buck, too, seemed at ease but Eddie couldn't very well ask him straight out while Chris was listening.

When they reached their starting point they all decided to get out and do some slides. The boys wanted to start in the kids section, so they made their way back towards their chairs. Chris was walking by himself this time, going slow, and Javi was next to him patiently matching Chris's speed. Buck and Eddie watched him, walking so close their shoulders were in constant contact, and they had matching grins on their face.

The women from the bus watched them with mixed emotions. They couldn't pick which man they were more jealous of, or, which they'd rather trade places with. The woman go through the motions of responding to their kids gabbering, but they're in five inches of water and have full confidence not even their kids could drown in that.

They watch as the blonde man takes each Chris and Javi under an arm and starts marching into the water playground with the young boys hanging limply, giggling merrily. Our kids notice and follow, so one woman, the one who teaches yoga, follows them into the water. The two women left drift over to Eddie and Annie.

Eddie murmured nervously, "Oh god, they're coming over here."

Annie, who had her back to the woman glanced at him and matched his tone, "Who?"

"The mom who wore way too much makeup for a water park and the one who has an Etsy shop."

"Oh god, avoid eye contact. Is it too late to follow Buck?" Annie never gets a reply because the women reach them.

"Hi guys!" Etsy mom squeals, much too loud, "Well I'll be, Edward, that husband of yours is too cute with those boys."

"My name is not Edward." If asked at a later date, Eddie would maintain that that was the most important part of the sentence to address. Annie snorts next to him, and covers it unsuccessfully if the glare from make up mom is anything to go by.

Before either women can ask another question, Buck yells from the top of the slide.

"Eddie! Annie!" Then he sits behind Chris, who sits behind Javi and the three slide quickly down the water slide and into a small pool at the finish.

Javi stands and jumps out quickly and Buck grabs Chris and they stand together. Soon after they stood, the yoga mom and two kids slid down and landed in the same spot. Buck bends down to speak to all the children and they all laugh uproariously. Even the yoga mom had a smile on her face while watching the interaction. When Buck stands up, Chris grabs around his forearm and holds on. Buck lifts him easily, extending his arm out to pull Chris off the ground. Soon every kid has copied Chris and Buck has two children hanging off each of his arms, and he's not even struggling. He curls his arms up like when he does a dumbbell curl at the gym. The kids squeal with joy and Buck laughs with them.

Yoga mom stands, head falling to the side slowly as Buck walks away from her. She can't believe her eyes, she hadn't believed Buck could get any hotter and then he is exceedingly competent with children. And strong. His biceps bulge and his back, ass, and calves flex with every step he takes away from her.

She is brought back to real life when the last kid slides down and lands at her feet. "C'mon Misses-Tyler's-mom!" He crows and takes off after Buck, trying to find a place to grab and hang onto. He ends up monkey-grabbing onto the man's leg, slowly sliding down with every step until he sits atop Bucks foot. Buck never falters, walking straight for Eddie.

Eddie feels a smirk taking over his face as he is faced with Evan Buckley being attacked by children.

"Eddie look at all the monkeys I picked up!"

"I see. I'll take one off your hands for you." Eddie swoops down and grabs Chris around his waist, and Chris let's go easily to grab onto his father, giggling.

"No! But he's my favorite monkey." Buck let's his arms drop and the kids all land back on their feet. "C'mere I want my monkey back." Buck reached for Chris, but Eddie spun them around, using his body to shield his son.

"Nuh uh. I'll keep him." Eddie denies, Chris giggling into his chest.

The rest of the world forgotten in favor of their game, Eddie and Buck play fight over Christopher, Eddie spinning wildly to evade Bucks grasp and Bucks hand just sliding against Chris instead of properly grasping.

Finally, Buck wraps both Christopher and Eddie in his arms. "Ah ha! Just what I wanted, both my favorite monkeys."

Chris cheers, happy with the outcome and cuddles into Buck while staying in his father's arms. Buck pressed many quick kisses all over his face and Chris cries out, quickly moving back to his father. "Daddy! Get Daddy, Buck."

Buck freezes, indecision grips him, but he rolls his eyes at himself and leans in to press one solid kiss to Eddie's cheek. "Got him, you get him too Chris."

So Chris leans up and kisses Eddie on his other cheek. Eddie grins at the two boys and sighs with happiness.

"You two really are just the _cutest_ , aren't you?"

The voice jars Buck and Eddie, the former dropping his arms and spinning to the voice.

A teacher stands there, Mr. Ryland, from the bus. He was a teacher of another third grade class, Eddie believed.

"How do you guys keep the spark alive? With a kid, no less."

Buck made a faint noise of offence, timidly reaching up to cover Chris's ears. "I believe that is inappropriate for our current company."

Eddie snorts. "He doesn't know what that means."

"Well then you go ahead and tell him, hm?" Buck says, eyebrows raised high, like he was daring Eddie. Eddie didn't understand what was happening here, but he thought it best to play along.

"Oh, I'd better not just in case Chris wises up."

"Hm, good idea." Bucks eyebrows dropped back down to their normal level and he spun back to face Mr. Ryland with a barely-pleasant smile.

Mr. Ryland had his own, genuine, smile in place. "Mm. Banter. Okay, I'll try that." He offered a hand to shake, "I'm Adam Ryland. My husband is Quentin Ryland, he's around here somewhere with our son Hunter Ryland. Hunter is younger than Chris, y'all wouldn't know him. I just wanted to introduce myself, say hi and all that."

Buck eyed him for a moment before extending his hand. "Evan Buckley, people call me Buck."

"Eddie Diaz and this is Christopher Diaz, who you may or may not know I guess." Eddie offered awkwardly, switching Chris around to shake the man's hand.

"I'm supposed to be heading to the wave pool right about now, I believe Annie and Javi are already over there. Do you want to walk together?"

Buck and Eddie realize at the same time that they are alone other than Adam. "Oh." Buck murmured softly, then looked to Eddie and Chris for their response.

"Hm, Chris? Do you want to go to the wave pool?" Eddie ask, looking at the boy to gauge his reaction. The wave pool was one of the things Buck and himself were most worried about.

Chris's young face showed his indecision clearly. "I-well, I-" He stumbles over his speech, and Bucks comes back to circle him into his arms.

"Remember what I said Chris. You don't have to face every fear today. I will always do whatever you need me to. Okay, buddy?"

Chris nods and nods once more. "Okay. Let's go. I want to try."

Adam had watched the whole exchange with a sparkle in his eye, and he clapped his hands together and started them in the direction of the wave pool. Chris got dropped back onto his feet for the journey, again holding onto Buck and Eddie's hands for support.

Adam and Buck made small talk, Buck apparently moving past his reluctance towards the man quickly. Eddie was contemplating how to approach the wave pool without making either Buck or Chris nervous from his own anxiety when Buck gasped dramatically.

"Eddie, he has a _baby_!"

"What? Who?" Eddies face scrunched in confusion but Bucks grin only grew.

"Adam! Hunter is a baby! He's in preschool and he's a baby. Oh my gosh I love babies." Buck gushed and Eddie stared at him with wide eyes.

Eddie was suddenly assaulted with images of Buck holding babies and gushing over babies and nearly dropped where he stood.

Too soon Adam led us to his husband and their son.

"Q, this is Buck and Eddie and Christopher. Buck wants to meet Hunter."

Quentin stood from where Hunter had been splashing in the shallow water and offered him up to Buck.

Buck gasped, again, and cradled the baby with infinite care. He immediately swooped down so Chris could see. He cooed softly, "Look Chris, look how cute and squishy and chubby he is. Oh my goodness just look at him."

Eddie stared blankly at the man, "How have I never seen you with a baby? I'd definitely have remembered."

Buck dropped the baby voice for just a moment. "I can't do this at work." He picked up back up, cooing at Hunter. "No, if I did this at work all the parents would think I was crazy. Wouldn't they? Yes, yes they would, sweetheart. You precious baby boy." Bucks voice dissolves into mumbles Eddie can't decipher and he looks, wide eyed, to Adam and Quentin.

"I've never seen him with a baby." Eddie said, voice quiet with disbelief.

"Hm. Makes you want one, huh?" Quentin questions earnestly.

"Yes."

Bucks head shot up to Eddie.

"Really?"

" _Yes_."

Buck grins widely and then tucks his face down towards Hunter again. He heaves a great sigh and relinquishes Hunter back to his fathers.

"What do you say, Chris, ready to face the music?" Buck ask, reaching down to the boy with his newly freed hands.

"No music, just waves, silly." Chris admonished gently.

Buck laughs quietly and picks the boy up. "Okay, genius. Want to do the same thing we did early? Before the lazy river?"

Chris agrees, and so they set out towards the shallow water. This area was much larger than the one at the last river, but it was shaped similarly. A big open area that funneled down a little the deeper you went into the water. Chris and Buck sat together in just a few inches, stayed for a while, then crawled a little farther in and sat again. They repeated the process until Chris was nearly submerged to his shoulders when he was sitting in Bucks lap, when the alarm that indicated the start of the waves rung out. Chris scrambled in fear, trying to climb Buck and at the same time urge Buck up and out of the water. Eddie tensed at the sight of them, but Buck only stood quickly, grasping Chris securely in his arms.

Eddie couldn't hear over the racket of the children and the waves, but he could see Buck tuck his chin in and duck his head down inorder to talk in Chris's ear. Chris calmed quickly, but they didn't sit back down or wade further into the waves at any point. They stood exactly where they had been, maybe they were talking, Eddie couldn't tell from where he sat with Adam, Quentin, and Hunter. After the waves ended and Eddie's boys still stayed in the same spot he made his way to them.

Buck turned only his head at his arrival, the rest of his body locked up tight. Eddie reached up and laid a hand on the side of Buck's face. His fingers fluttered gently, his thumb landed on Bucks chin, under his lips. He grasped with the lightest pressure.

"You're okay." He assured.

Then he looked to Chris and laid his other hand behind his head, cradling gently.

"We're okay." Eddie nodded, making steady eye contact with his son and then moving back up to Buck.

Both of them seemed to let out some tension. Buck nodded and Chris didn't react other than to breathe deeply a few times.

They stayed like that for a long while, their only movement was Eddie's fingers rubbing gently.

Eventually the waves came on again and Chris whispered, "Buck are you scared, too?"

Buck gulped hard. He had been hesitant to admit it to Chris, thinking that if Chris knew he'd think the one thing that felt safe would not be safe, but faced with the question point blank he couldn't bring himself to lie. "Yeah buddy. I am scared. I'm scared of not finding you in the waves. That is my worst nightmare, Chris. But it's okay to be scared. I know that when I'm scared I can turn to your dad and he can turn to me when he gets scared. When you're scared you can turn to me or your dad. We all got each other, okay? We have each other's backs, all the time."

Eddie simply nodded along, and Chris smiled.

"Okay. We can stand in the waves. A little deeper."

Eddie held onto Buck, his arm sliding around his back and clutching his hip. Buck held Chris with both arms, not loosening his grip once. Chris didn't mention it being too tight, so Buck didn't even consider it. They all stood, about waist high for Buck and Eddie, only Chris's toes getting splashed with water, for the duration of the waves. After it was over Chris asked for lunch and so they left, after waving bye at Annie and Javi and Adam, Quentin and Hunter.

The trio all sat together on the same beach lounger, happily squished together sharing sandwiches and cookies and water between them. After that they got ice cream.

Eddie hadn't wanted one, he knew that Chris never finished his own anyways and he'd end up eating the leftovers. Buck just about swallowed his whole, devouring it all before the ice cream could even begin to melt.

Chris, on the other hand, kept getting distracted and was talking rather than eating. He had ice cream all over his fist and beginning to run up his wrist towards his elbow and Buck was in distress.

"Bud, can I help you with that? You gotta lick the sides." Chris stuck his messy hand out to Buck at his request and Buck winced.

He used two fingers to hold the come and quickly licked the sides to clean up the rapidly warming treat. "Ugh, I hate sticky things. Eddie will you pour water on Chris's hand?"

Eddie had laughed the first time, but this was the third time they completed this process.

"Chris, you done yet? I'll eat the rest." Eddie finally asked, and Chris happily handed it over. He hadn't eaten any in at least eight minutes at this point.

Buck gaped, "Why did you do that before? Did you know this was going to happen?"

Eddie only laughed and demolished the cone in two quick bites. He continued to laugh at Buck’s offended expression all the way back to their loungers.

___

Yoga mom and make up mom sat together with their kids and their husbands. They were so entranced by watching the spectacle that was the Diaz boys and their Buck - all whom were trying to shove two lounge chairs close enough so they could all lay together - that they missed the cuteness that was their own husbands. The men were lifting their kids high in the air and making airplane and rocket noises, seemingly unable to just pick one mode of transportation.

Buck picked up and removed the table that sat between their two chairs, he placed it by the feet of the lounger, and turned back to the other two. Eddie directed Chris to get out of the middle and he shoved one lounger a couple inches closer, then Buck went to the side of the other and did the same thing. Soon, there was a space made, probably only about as big as a twin bed. The men glanced at it and then at each other, and at the same time gave a careless shrug. Buck laid down first, Eddie following after he had his son in his arms. Chris crawled to the middle and urged both men to squish in all together.

Make up mom leaned to yoga mom, “That is just the sweetest thing I’ve ever seen.”

Yoga mom sighed, “They’re really doing a great job with Chris. Chris has handled this whole day so well. He handled the tsunami well after it happened, Tyler said he came to school tired sometimes after it, but he didn’t miss any school. He didn’t act out, those two men really did the most for that kid.”

Finally, yoga mom's husband said, “Honey, look.” And threw Tyler in the air, to his delight. Yoga mom gasped and stood up quickly.

“Give me my baby! You are going to crack his head on the ground.” She yelled, advancing towards them.

He smirked, tossing the boy again. “He loves it. You can have him if you can reach him.” Having successfully engaged his wife, he held Tyler above his head until his biceps started to shake, and then he grabbed both of them in his arms and trapped them there. His wife had been distracted all day and he was sick of it.

Soon make up mom let herself be drawn into the shenanigans of her own husband and kid, and Eddie, Buck, and Chris had one less set of prying eyes on them.

___

Eddie knew Chris was going to fall asleep, this was the kid’s signature move. He’d ask to lay down and cuddle, and within minutes he’d be conked out where they managed to find a spot, more and more often Eddie convinces him to pick a bed because the couch is not a comfortable place to be trapped with a sleeping kid on you.

He hadn’t, however, expected Buck to fall asleep too. Buck put up a strong fight, but eventually his blinks got slower and longer and the pauses in his sentences dragged out, and then he was conked out, head lolling to one side, leaning his weight on Chris.

Even if it didn’t seem to be, Eddie knew his two boys had dealt with a lot today and so he let them be. He grabbed his phone from Chris’s backpack and wasted time reading the news, checking twitter - which he did not make himself, but he figured if it was on his phone he might as well try it. When he opened the app it only took him a moment to figure it out. Buck downloaded it for him one slow day at the station, forcing him through the steps of setting it up. The alarm sounded before he could show him how to use it, and it just hadn’t come up again. When Eddie found the ‘following’ tab he laughed to himself, Buck had only followed his own account. Hen and Chim had both yelled out their user handles and Buck had nodded at them, but apparently had not followed through.

Buck’s arm twitched, hard enough for Eddie to see out of the corner of his eye. Eddie watched him carefully, His arm twitched again, and Buck shook his head softly, muttering unintelligibly. His fist clenched and he groaned, “No. Chris. No. Ed-” He shook his head again. Eddie cursed under his breath, Buck was having a nightmare. Chris was leaning on Eddie too much for the man to stand up and not disturb the boys sleep. He didn't want Chris seeing Buck in a nightmare.

“Buck. Buck, wake up.” He whispered harshly, hoping it would carry but not be too loud to Chris.

Buck only twitched his arm again, his features scrunching and his mouth pursing.

“Evan. It's okay. Chris is okay. Evan, wake up.” Eddie’s voice had gone desperate, raising in volume slightly. It was enough to knock the nightmare away. Buck shot up, all of Eddie's efforts useless because Chris woke with him. Buck gasped for breath, reaching out with both hands and not catching on anything. He almost knocked himself off the lounge chair.

“Everythings okay. Evan, look at Chris. It’s all okay.”

Chris glanced around with confusion as he crawled over to lay on Buck. “You okay, Bucky?”

Buck gripped Chris to his chest. “Yes, sorry. So sorry for waking you, buddy. I’m okay.”

Eddie followed Chris, sliding closer to Buck. He reached for his face again, “You don’t have to be sorry. You’re okay. Okay, Evan? Look at me.”

Buck nodded, dragging his gaze from Christopher to his father. “Yeah, yeah. Okay.” He mumbled faintly.

Chris was already sleeping again, curled into Buck’s chest perfectly. Buck slumped back onto the lounger with a deep breath. He didn’t know what to say, scared if he opened his mouth old apologies would flow unheeded.

Eddie dropped his forehead to the man's bare shoulder, exhaling against it. “C’mere, Buck.”

Eddie maneuvered everything around so Buck was leaning into Eddies chest, Eddie could wrap his arms around and hold onto Chris and Buck, which he did. They stayed like this until it was time to go back to the bus. Buck never had gotten back to sleep, but he had gotten tired laying there, he was just too tense to relax into slumber again.

But when they got the call to load onto the busses, Buck stood with Chris in his arms, planning on carrying the boy to the bus. Eddie watched, Buck’s shoulders slumped with fatigue, feet landing heavily with each step he took. When they reached their designated bus Eddie stopped Buck. “Here, hand him over. You’re dead on your feet, Buck.”

Buck shook his head. “No its, okay. I got him.”

“I know you’ve got him. Who’s got you, Buck? Let me help. Give me Christopher. I want to walk behind you on the bus stairs and make sure you don’t come tumbling right back down them.”

Neither man noticed the cooing noises they were receiving from the other parents surrounded, who were also waiting to get onto the bus. Buck grumbled but transferred Chris into his father's arms. He also, sleepily, dropped a kiss on Christophers head and then followed it up with one to Eddie’s cheek.

“C’n I sleep on the bus?” He muttered, body swaying towards Eddies. Chris had begun to wake up with all the movement and giggled.

“Bucky’s sleepy, Daddy. Catch him, don’t let him fall over.” Chris advided, sensibly.

“Oh lord have mercy.” Eddie muttered, staring straight up. Back to Chris he said, “I’ll catch him, mijo. Let’s get you on the bus.”

Annie had been standing, watching the family with fondness when she stepped up. She offered to help Chris if he needed it, so Eddie let her take him and drop him onto the first bus step. With Annie’s hand on his back, he used the guide railing to pull him all the way up the stairs. After Chris was on his way back to their seats, Eddie turned back to Buck.

“Did you sleep well last night? Or at all?” Eddie asked, placing his hands on Bucks waist to steer him towards the door.

“Hm? A little, probably.” Buck muttered, letting Eddie lead him.

“Probably?!” Eddie was exasperated.

Together they made it up the stairs. When they reached their seat, they saw that Annie and Javi had traded someone so they could be seated next to Buck, Eddie, and Chris. Chris popped up when he saw Buck and Eddie. “I saved your seat, I am going to sit with Javi. His mom said it was okay.”

Annie laughed, “I didn’t know how Buck was supposed to sleep with the three of you squished in there, so enjoy the small amount of space you gained.” Eddie laughed with her and gave his thanks. He, too, hadn’t known how it was going to work out.

Even with the added space, it still proved difficult. Bus seats were not made for grown men to lounge in them. Somehow they managed to get Bucks head on Eddies shoulder, body slumped only slightly to reach it.

Even though Buck was taller than Eddie, the difference was all in his legs, so when they sat they were pretty much the same size. Buck was knocked out before they left the parking lot. The only adjustment he made in his sleep was to wind around Eddies arms more securely. It made Eddie snort and think to himself, _‘Who is this man to call others a monkey?’_

The bus started loud, but quickly it seemed that children and parents were both feeling the exhaustion. We got stuck in traffic caused by an accident so we made it back to school much later than everyone had anticipated. By the time they pulled into the school lot, Eddies own head was lolling backwards and he was resting his eyes. Across the aisle, Javi had fallen asleep atop Chris, who was being entertained by a book he brought along in his backpack.

Annie had taken pictures of the young boys, and sneakily, of Buck and Eddie. She planned to ask for one of their numbers to send along the pictures before they all left for the day.

Eddie gently woke Buck, who clenched tighter around Eddies arms before snapping up quickly and muttered in confusion, “Where the hell are we?”

“Shh, were still at school.”

Buck muttered an apology and then, eyes still closed, asked where Chris was. Eddie told him and Buck relaxed, seemingly about to fall back asleep. “No, no. Wake up, we gotta go home still. Remember pizza and ice cream for dinner? Moana movie night?”

Annie was also waking Javi up and Chris snuck across the aisle when the bus was parked. He climbed onto Eddies lap and grabbed Bucks face.

“Buck, you drove us. You gotta wake up.”

“Daddy knows how to drive my car, it’s okay. If you want me to get up, you’re gonna have to carry me, Chris. I won’t make it back on my own.” Chris giggled at Buck’s antics.

Buck opened one eye to peak at him, “You laughing at me, buddy? My own man, laughing at me. I can’t believe it. I never thought you would betray me like this, Christopher.”

Chris shook his head. “No, no. We’ll carry you. We got each other, remember?” Chris promised, his sweet face so earnest that Buck couldn’t carry out the charade any longer.

“Yes, buddy, I remember.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will be writing one more chapter with a wrap up of the boys at home eating dinner ( maybe with a little bit of relationship discussion, aka, buddie gets their shit together and talks about their feelings ).


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Buck and Eddie finally say the words to affirm what they had already been feeling for a long time. Chris is their biggest cheerleader.

Buck is fully awake by the time they get home and they order pizza. Eddie sets up Moana and tells Chris to go change, since he had been asleep none of them had changed out of their bathing suits. They had all been dry anyways, so it wasn’t a huge deal but it was uncomfortable after such a long day. 

Before Buck can head into the bathroom, Eddie corners him in the hallway. Eddie lays a hand where Buck’s shoulder meets his neck, his go to spot to get Buck to pay attention to him. 

“Hey, I’m proud of you. I know you were putting up a brave face for Chris, but I don’t want you hiding from me too. You gotta tell me what you’re feeling so it doesn’t eat you up, okay?” Eddies hand squeezes lightly as he waits for Buck’s response. 

Buck broke eye contact, staring at the floor. He felt a blush rise to his cheeks, for a number of reasons. Eddies hand on him felt nice, more than nice and hearing the man say he was proud of Buck flipped his stomach all around. “Thanks.” 

Chris, in an act of uncharacteristic sneakiness, slowly cracked his door open to watch Buck and Eddie. 

“Did you notice that all the other parents thought we were together?” Buck asks, eyes making their way back to Eddies face. What he saw there surprised him, Eddie has his own blush painted on his cheeks. “You did! Why didn’t you tell anyone the truth?” 

Eddie sighed. “What’s the truth, Buck? You parent my kid. We parent Chris together. We act like we’re together, in almost every way except physically and more and more often I feel like we’re toeing the line of friends and more. We don’t talk about it, I don’t know what you think about it. I don’t know how you feel about men-” Eddie broke off, hand squeezing again. “There is a lot I don’t know about. A lot I think, but can’t be certain. I just-” Eddies eyes searched Buck’s face for some hint of what he thought but Buck was slack jawed and silent. 

Eddie continued, “Are we ever going to talk about it? What does it mean? Why are we ignoring it?” 

“Do you-” Buck gulped, “Do you want to kiss me?” His hand came up to hold onto Eddies ribs, his fingers splayed wide, grip soft and hesitant. “I didn’t know how to bring it up. I didn’t have a plan I was just going to be in yours and Chris’s life until I wasn’t allowed anymore. But I don’t want- Eddie, I don’t want to leave it. I love being with you and Chris, I love that he treats me like a parent. I was so scared that you would notice and send me packing for overstepping.”

Eddie shook his head, “I loved it too. I love seeing you too together. You two are everything I want. Our life is exactly what I want. I would never send you packing for any reason. I-” Before he could continue on his confession a noise broke through that made them both jolt. 

“Kiss already!” Christopher cried, bouncing happily where he stood, “You guys talk too much!” 

Buck laughed and pulled Eddie back to him, Eddie slid his hand up Bucks neck to grasp his cheek, his other hand doing the same on the other side. They both slowly approached the other, when they finally met it was perfect. 

The kiss wasn’t anything too wild, due to Christophers presence, but their lips pressed together in one soft, dry kiss, and they both immediately pulled away to gauge the others reaction. Then they came together again, hands clutching, to once more kiss, harder and longer this time. Chris cheered in the background, which made them smile and disrupt the kiss. Buck laid his forehead against Eddies and simply touched their noses softly, sliding them together with a smile on his face. 

“Okay okay, not too much now.” Chris warned, still in his hiding spot behind the door. 

“Oh, really, Mister? What were you doing spying on Daddy and me anyways? Huh?” Buck dropped down to be eye level with Chris, who giggled and, upon realizing he had no where else to go, spun back into his room. “Oh-ho, not so fast! I’m gonna getcha!” Buck tore into Chris’s room and captured him easily, pinning him in his arms and ticking the boy to tears. 

Chris gasped with laughter and managed to squeal out some apologies in between manic giggles. Buck didn’t let up. “Nope, not good enough. I’m not gonna stop until the pizza gets here.” 

Chris wriggles uselessly, gasping, “Daddy! Daddy, help!” Before Eddie could intervene, the doorbell sounded. Buck stopped immediately. 

“Ooh. You, sir, got lucky today. Next time won’t be so easy.” 

While Eddie went to grab their pizza Buck and Chris lounged on Chris’s bed, both catching their breath. When Eddie came back they had their heads ducked together, talking softly. Eddie took the opportunity to go change into sweatpants and a new shirt. 

When he left his room, the boys were still in Chris’s bed. “C’mon. Pizza and movie time. Buck still has to change his clothes.” 

Chris grabbed his crutches and headed for the living room. Buck smiled softly up at Eddie from Chris’s bed. Eddie leaned down to grab his hand, he dropped a kiss to Buck’s forehead and pulled them both up. “Go on, get some regular clothes on. We’ll wait for you to start the movie.” 

“Oh, goodie.” Buck said sarcastically, with a roll of his eyes. He quickly dropped another kiss on Eddies mouth, before Eddie could react he was walking away. “I’m never going to get used to that.”   
Eddie grinned, he didn’t think he would either.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! 
> 
> I'm on tumblr under 'fictionallovesarebetter' so please find me there as well! 
> 
> https://fictionallovesarebetter.tumblr.com/

**Author's Note:**

> Comment and Encouragements keep me alive and well.  
> Hope you enjoy, good people.


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